Geography of my reading 2022

2022 changed pretty much all areas of my life, starting from a change in the country of residence, all the way to literary preferences. Olenka, who devoured fiction novels in one night, would be surprised if she learned about the fascination with a new area of literature for me, which allows to dive even deeper into my favourite topics. As of the end of the year, my improvised library in the dorm consists of 90% non-fiction.

The idea to analyze my reading habits arose thanks to Yakym, who has been practising such reflections for the second year. I also borrowed a sample of reading statistics from him. I hope that this analysis will make it possible to understand my tendencies in choosing and evaluating books, and later to plan the new year of reading (well, also to give myself some credit for immaculate girl-boss vibes)).

FAVOURITES

5-star books on GoodReads in 2022 are very diverse, and have earned their place among favourites for a variety of reasons. Surprisingly interesting biography “Ernest Hemingway: A Writer’s Life” or Boris Johnson's “The Dream of Rome” were easy reads, but at the same time many details still remain in my memory (such as Hemingway's fascination with polydactyl cats, or about books , which he dedicated to each of his four wives).

“Watching Darkness Fall: FDR, His Ambassadors, and the Rise of Adolf Hitler” - definitely a gem, it was incredibly interesting to observe the development of events; the atmosphere of anxiety and increasing danger was felt better than in many fiction books on this topic, and US diplomats appeared in the imagination as fully developed, "alive" characters (most of them, however, caused rather negative emotions).

Some books I read "at the right time", that's why they now have a special place in my heart. At the beginning of the full-scale invasion, to occupy myself with something, I read "Atlas Shrugged". Ever since I’ve heard a lot of criticism towards this book, but I remember not the ode to capitalism at all, but rather Dagny Taggart, John Galt and Henry Rearden, observing the life crises of which made it a little easier to bear my own fears.

ACADEMIC LITERATURE

A very large part of this year’s reading - essays, articles, and chapters from books by various authors, that were recommended by our lecturers at the university, are not included in the statistics or the general list of reading, since I haven't read them from start to finish. Perhaps the most interesting thing of the first term at uni was getting to know the basics of practical philosophy, primarily due to the good presentation of the material by the professor. I highly recommend Isaiah Berlin's book “The Sense of Reality: Studies in Ideas and Their History” to everyone (especially those studying political science or something similarish). With an inspiration (often not a feature common among philosophers), the author explains how to make the right judgments, where to look for "your" morality, and how to combine it with politics.

I. Berlin was a good introduction to the works of other realists, among whom I want to mention Raymond Geuss and Richard Bourke with the book “Political Judgment: Essays for John Dunn”. Although they would despise this choice of mine, I also consider it necessary to mention Ronald Dworkin, “Justice for Hedgehogs”. This is an attack on the above-mentioned Berlin and his division of people into foxes and hedgehogs based on whether they believe in one idea or several. Both authors deserve attention, even if they defend different theories. And Dworkin also mentions Rapunzel in his text, which deserves a special thanks to him)

In addition, I often referred to “The Changing Character of War” by Hew Strachan and Sibylle Scheipers while writing my final paper. An in-depth analysis of modern wars, the main challenges and potential solutions. This book, as well as Frans Osinga's articles (for example, “The West and Three Decades of War”) on the same topic, gave a more sober look at the Russian invasion and the prospects for ending this war, and allowed me to separate emotions from reason.

HISTORY

I read a lot on historical topics mainly thanks to my partner, who kindly lent or gifted books to me. If you are interested in the history and (no less horrifying) present life of China, I recommend reading “A Force So Swift: Mao, Truman, and the Birth of Modern China, 1949”, and also "In the Camps: China's High-Tech Penal Colony". Spoiler: minorities in China live terribly, I still don't understand why the genocide of the Uyghurs and other nationalities of China is not shouted about more. Both books leave a bitter aftertaste.

Let's jump from the country with an icy soul to just an icy country - Lithuania. As a conscientious student of Vilnius University, before starting my studies, I read “The History of Lithuania”, thanks to which I can occasionally surprise my groupmates with the knowledge about Vytautas, Gediminas and Algirdas. To understand Lithuanian culture, of course, familiarization with works that are considered classics, that is, those that are among the favourite books of both young Lithuanians and older generations, also helps. Antanas Škėma's novel “White Shroud” was recommended to me, and I ended 2022 with this book. Covering the emigration of Lithuanians to the USA in the 1950s, diving into the brain of a person on the verge of insanity, a sense of danger, anxiety... As you can see, in 2022 I clearly had a craving for books with a post-apocalypse atmosphere (and it is not surprising after all). 

NOVELS

In this category - fiction, all romances, historical novels, dramas, even a little bit of horror. Sylvia Plath's “The Bell Jar” was one of the most memorable books in this category, although the expectations for this one were much higher than, for example, for Donna Tart's “The Secret History”. This masterpiece rightfully belongs to modern classics, and everyone and their hamster talk about this book for a reason. Dark Academia at its best, “Dead Poets Society” and “Kill Your Darlings” vibe: a bunch of rich students whose whims are always catered for, so there's no choice but to seek bliss and adventure in philosophy, drugs and murder.

And again, the selected books are all linked with a thread of depressive inclinations, which is why the terrifying dystopia “Lord of the Flies” by William Golding, the story about conversion to the cult “You too can have a body like mine” by Alexandra Kleeman, and “Garden of Gethsemane” by Ivan Bahrianyi appeared on my shelf. Regarding the latter, I am more than certain that Bahrianyi was an inspiration for the above-mentioned Škėma. The novels were written with a difference of ten years, but both explore the experience of surviving repressions of the totalitarian machine of the USSR. And it was not without pleasure to note that Bahrianyi’s characters (Andrii Chumak in this book and Grygory Mnohohrishnyy in "Tiger Trappers") are much stronger in spirit, and the works end on a much more hopeful note.

The only easy book among favourites in this category is “Stoner”, an ordinary story of an ordinary man, whose biggest life drama is a dispute with colleagues at work. Nevertheless, this book is just what I needed to relax a bit; and that's why I plan to read another work of John Williams – "August" in the new year.

This is where the reflections of my reading in 2022 end. Some plans for 2023: definitely search for broader contexts, so historical works on unexplored before countries and regions will definitely appear on my shelf. Additionally, look more into Lithuanian literature, I feel that there might be some more great works. As of the second week of 2023 though, I'm reading a series of graphic novels from a Ukrainian publishing house Vydavnytstvo. 

Thank you for taking time to read this, see you next year)